So here's the short of it, 
Such a lovely day...

And here's the long.

So here's the short of it, 

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a Kentucky Girl!

And here's the long.
This has been posted on Facebook by lots of my Kentucky friends.

photo by Susan Kennedy Hanna, tip viabelle's bakery @bellesbakerylex)

I moved away from Kentucky when I was in my early 20's and never returned there to live. But I consider myself a Kentucky Girl, because of the indelible mark that it left on me.  What I believe, how I live, and what's important to me all have their roots in my Kentucky Heritage.  From the mountain community where I was born, to the small town high school that formed my adolescent sensibilities, and my small liberal arts college down the road where I came into my adulthood, Kentucky runs strong in my blood.  While I don't follow sports and don't really know much about who's playing who or even what sports season it is, if someone is watching a game that Kentucky is playing in, I have a strong urge to sit down and root for the Cats!

So when I saw this photo, I had a rush of feeling about how important that feeling of Kentucky has been in my life.

So here's the short of it, 
Early Valentine's here on the circle.

And here's the long.

Tonight we decided to do an early Valentine celebration since Liga and Valdis and Mom would be with us and probably not on the actual day.  We had a nice spaghetti dinner.  I liked the spaghetti for Valentines and kept thinking of the Lady and the Tramp picture and how appropriate it was for Valentines.  We even had meatballs like in the movie. I think I should watch that movie again sometime.







Everyone gave cards and got cards.  Mom shared the chocolate covered strawberries that Russ and Tina sent her.  (They came packed in dry ice!).  And they were delicious.
I'd never had Shari's Berries before. But for sure they might have a repeat performance at our house.





Mom also brought candy hearts. We had lots of fun comparing the sayings to the ones we remember from our childhoods.  It seems that I remember them being higher quality printing as well.  Actually Liga said that first - that she couldn't remember not being able to read the candy hearts when she was younger.

"Text me" and "UR IT" are pretty clearly this generation.  "For Ever", that's the one I like.


Happy Early Valentine's to everyone!

So here's the short of it, 
We're finally getting a bit of winter!

And here's the long.

I thought winter was going to just pass us by this year!  The jonquils and daffodils did as well, They are already pushing their way up and blooming all over the place.  Now we're having a taste of the winter we should have had.  The temperature is supposed to get down to 18 degrees tonight!  And tomorrow it won't get really warm.  And if we are lucky we'll have another low temperature night.

We've had all sorts of speculation from weather people and other news folks about how bad the mosquitoes are going to be this year if we don't get some cold temperatures.  And I've been worried about the fleas for Sophie and Lola!  So I hope there's lots of truth in the weather forecast!

Besides, we are all in this warm house and going to snuggle in for this cold night.

So here's the short of it, 
Good Doctor Report!

And here's the long.

I had a follow up appointment with my oncologist Dr. Schlabach today.

In case anyone doesn't know how I feel - he's absolutely the best oncologist that there is!  I'm pretty lucky to have found him. Actually I don't think it was about luck. I do believe that finding Dr. Schlabach was one of those moments when prayers were answered.

Today was a good appointment.  It's time for another bone scan, since I'm taking Arimidex, they have to keep an eye on my bone density.  That's scheduled for a couple of weeks from now.  Everything else seemed to be in order. I have a really bad rash at the bottom of my right breast.  I got a prescription for a cream that should take care of it in no time.

So here's the short of it, 
The moon is so lovely tonight.

And here's the long.

I love hearing about the names of the full moons.  Most of the names come from the Native Americans.  Since it seems that Ma Howard was half or a quarter Cherokee, maybe some of that genetic memory runs through my blood.

We are just two days out from the full moon of February.  Our Native American ancestors had lots of names for the moons.  Here's a quote from Indian Country - a native American online news source - about the names for the February full moon.

“Some tribes also referred to it as the Full Hunger Moon or Little Famine Moon, since harsh weather conditions in their areas made hunting very difficult,” the Farmers’ Almanac says. “Forced to gnaw on bones and sip bone marrow soup for sustenance, the Cherokee named it the Full Bony Moon.”

The Algonquin name may have the world abuzz, but it is just one of dozens of tribal names for the February moon. Some samples are below, thanks to the site AmericanIndian.net, which actually lists the Algonquin name for February moon as wapicuummilcum, or Ice in River Is Gone.

Other tribal February moon names, according to the site: the Abenaki call it piaôdagos, Makes Branches Fall in Pieces Moon; the Anishnaabe (Chippewa, Ojibwe), from the Great Lakes, named it the Sucker Moon, or namebini-giizis. The Apache had a cheerier epithet, Frost Sparkling in the Sun, while the Assiniboine called it Long Dry Moon, and the Choctaw nicknamed it hotvlee-hv’see, or Wind Moon. Back in the wintry realm, the Comanche of the southern plains called it positsu mua, Sleet Moon, while the Canadian Cree of the northern plains called it the Old Moon. Up north in Alaska it’s also known as cepizun, or Old Moon, among the Haida, while the Hopi call it powamuya, Moon of Purification and Renewal.

On a more pessimistic note, the Kalapuya of the Pacific Northwest, in what is today Oregon, called it atchiulartadsh, Out of Food. Cannapopa wi was the name given the moon by the Lakota of the northern plains, Moon When the Trees Crack Because of the Cold.

Read more:http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/02/07/get-out-your-shades-for-the-brilliant-algonquin-snow-moon-96361 http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/02/07/get-out-your-shades-for-the-brilliant-algonquin-snow-moon-96361#ixzz1lwpXvmFy


So whatever we want to call it - the sky is clear and the moon is large and yellow over the circle.  My pictures with my little phone camera turn into a small bright circle in a huge swath of black.  But standing on the porch the moon is large and bright.  It's hovering over the circle and it almost seems as though the light is puddling on the road.  It's a really peaceful feeling.

We are in for a cold weekend, and the full moon on a cold, clear night is just really special.

So here's the short of it, 
Our little leadership group in the special ed. department is going to go through a radical change.

And here's the long.

We have 5 people who will be retiring at the end of June from our lead teacher group.  And we have another 2 who are going to be applying for assistant principalships.

If we really do have 7 new people, I can't imagine how different the dynamics will be.  It's a long time til the end of June and we have lots of work to do in the meantime, but it's one of those indicators I think of being one of the "old timers".  I have been around a long time and I've seen lots of things come and go, and I've worked with some amazing people. And there are many younger people who are becoming amazing educators; I'm fortunate to have the opportunity to work with them.  So one of the things that I will benefit from is the chance to work with great people in a new kind of relationship. I imagine that I will really miss the old guard, but as my former boss used to say, I'll be able to see things through another set of eyes when the new folk come on board.